Don't Know What You've Got 'Til It's Gone
by PikaSass
Summary: Sequel to my egoshipping story! It's been a year since Misty left Ash for his rival, but on a trip back to Pallet Town a year later, could she be having second doubts? (Not essential you read the first one, it's easy to pick up!)
1. The Bittersweet Return

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon!

A/N: As it said in the summary, this is the sequel to my egoshipping story "Decisions of the Heart" and I promise I'll never ever do another one again! (o^_^o)

"Gary, I'm really gonna have to buy a new strap for this bag soon. It's starting to annoy me" Misty complained, her bag precariously hanging off her right shoulder by one thin and fraying strap.

Her boyfriend of one year, Gary Oak, grinned mischievously and swung his arm round her shoulders. "There, that holds it better, you don't need a new strap now" he teased.

Misty laughed and let his arm stay there as they slowly walked along the familiar road that linked Viridian City to Gary's hometown of Pallet.

They were in no hurry now. The Johto competitions were over, with Gary gaining a respectable (but in his eyes useless) 10th placing, and now, a year after the competitions and a lot of intense battling later, Gary was ready to come home before the Indigo League competition commenced.

"I'll buy a new one in Pallet" Misty said, referring to her bag strap. Gary nodded and they continued to walk in silence as the approaching mountains of his hometown loomed towards them.

Their last year together had been fun, testing and sometimes unbelievable. To think that, once upon time, Misty had been best friends with his arch-rival, Ash Ketchum, was in itself remarkable. No one had picked that this would happen. But, in retrospect, it had turned out for the best. Misty no longer felt the strains of her crumbling friendship with Ash, and Gary made her happier than she had previously thought possible.

"Mist, you don't mind staying with my grandfather, do you?" Gary asked worriedly.

Misty simply smiled and briefly kissed his cheek. "I already told you, it's fine! Stop worrying, I know Professor Oak, he's a great guy. Where else were you expecting us to stay?"

Gary sighed. "I dunno...I just thought, there's a very good chance Ash will show up to visit Grandpa and, y'know, I want you to be cool with that."

Misty felt her throat freeze as she lost words. She hadn't actually thought of that. Of course Ash would visit, he would want to check on his Pokémon at the professor's place! 

"Well...I'll admit to you that won't be cool, but what are we gonna do? If it happens it happens" she said with a shrug. "I don't think it'll ruin the whole visit, Gary."

"Okay" Gary nodded and flashed her a smile that she instantly reflected. She knew that, a year ago, she had made the right choice coming with him. If she had still been with Ash and Brock now, God only knew what would've happened as a result.

"Well, here we are!" Gary announced grandly, waving a hand way too theatrically. Misty playfully swatted him and they both laughed as they approached the Pokémon professor's house. They walked in without knocking and Gary simply shouted his arrival. "Grandpa! We made it!"

The reply he got was muffled and quite distant. "We?" the professor repeated from another room. Gary and Misty followed the direction the voice had come from.

"Yeah, remember, I told you Misty was coming" Gary said, sounding frustrated. He didn't

understand how his grandfather could be so world renowned for being a Pokémon expert and yet be totally absent-minded at the same time.

Prof. Oak poked his head round the corner of his central lab and smiled warmly at the two of them. "Ah yes, Misty, I forgot about you. No offence or anything, it's just strange to see you without Ash" he commented lightly.

Misty, again, lost words but smiled back politely. She didn't care how strange it looked to be seen without Ash, she rather liked it.

"Speaking of Pallet's favourite trainer" Gary said sarcastically, "Has he shown up at all?"

"No, not that I know of" Prof. Oak shook his head and noticed Misty let out an almost unnoticeable sigh of relief. "But I believe he'll be coming home soon."

Soon. Soon meant anytime, but Misty decided not to dwell on it. If she thought about Ash, she would get upset and not enjoy this visit as much as she wanted to.

"Uh, Professor, I hate to be a pain, but do you mind if I take a shower or something?" she asked awkwardly.

"Oh sure, no problem. You've got the ensuite upstairs" Prof. Oak announced, to which Misty's eyes lit up.

"She got the ensuite!" Gary exclaimed with a laugh. "Whyyyy?" he fake whined.

"Gary, act your age and let the guests get the nice room" the Pokémon professor said severely. Gary went quiet and bit his lip to suppress the giggles that threatened to escape.

"I'll be up soon, okay? Just get yourself sorted first" Gary said gently. Misty nodded, gave him a quick kiss on his lips and shot upstairs. She was totally oblivious to the conversation Gary and his grandfather were about to engage in.

"I hope you realise what this has done to Ash" Professor Oak said, his eyes not moving from the computer screen in front of him.

Gary looked at him in shock. "What are you talking about?" he asked cautiously.

"The whole Misty thing" Prof. Oak said casually. "It still hurts him, you know. I think it might've affected his training in a bad way, he seems so...what's the word...distracted all the time" he shrugged.

The younger boy had grown up learning to respect his elders, but this time even he had to narrow his eyes at his grandfather. "Look Grandpa, I didn't force Misty to come with me. It was her choice, and I made sure she was totally cool with it before we left, okay? So don't go blaming me for Ash's problems. Besides, I care a lot for Misty" he added.

"Do you love her?" Prof. Oak asked bluntly.

"What?" Gary spluttered, totally caught off guard.

"I asked you if you love her" Prof. Oak repeated.

Gary paused. "I don't know" he said simply. "Maybe."

"Maybe?" The professor turned around in his chair and eyed Gary seriously. "You've been going out for a year and you're saying maybe?"

"Oh what would you know, Grandpa?" Gary exclaimed in frustration. "It's none of your business when my feelings towards Misty are concerned."

"Whatever you say." Professor Oak turned back around, leaving his puzzled and angry grandson to think his own thoughts.

Gary slowly trudged up the stairs, repeating his grandfather's words in his head. Do you love her? Well do you? His mind played confusing games with his heart as he thought this over. He could hear her softly singing in the shower and smiled to himself. Even her mere voice made him smile, or laugh, or feel warm and gooey inside. Warm and gooey? Gary? The two would never have gone together a year ago.

But Misty had done something to him. Something had been revealed in him that no one, even himself, could have considered possible. She brought out his good side, a side that he saved only for her really, but a good side nonetheless.

Ambling into Misty's room, he gratefully flopped down on her bed and sighed. Since when did his grandfather care what he did? He vaguely heard the water in the bathroom shut off but didn't move. His feet were so sore and tired from travelling, much like his head now was from listening to Professor Oak's weird confrontations of his life.

Misty walked in five minutes later, just as Gary's eyes were dropping defeatedly in sleep. She smiled and walked over to him. "A bit tired, huh? You've been working too hard, you know" she gently scolded, rubbing his shoulders as he continued to lie on her bed.

"Mmhmm" Gary replied non-comitally. "Misty...do you mind if I be a bit blunt with you here?"

Misty looked surprised but shrugged nonetheless. "Sure, what is it?"

"Misty...do you love me?" Gary asked nervously.

Naturally, Misty was surprised, but she smiled anyway. "You know what, Gary? I think I do."

"Really?" Gary asked in astonishment.

Misty nodded. "I think I honestly do."

Gary smiled as he brought his lips to hers in a tender kiss. "I think I love you too" he mumbled softly as they broke apart. It felt completely natural to the two of them, and all thoughts of Professor Oak and Ash evaporated from Gary's mind as he embraced the time alone with the one he loved.

*******

The next morning the early summer sun beamed down on Misty's eyes, causing her to rouse from her slumber earlier than her body clock was used to. With a half-sigh, half-yawn, she slowly sat up and took in her surroundings. Where was she? She panicked for a second before she remembered she was staying with Gary at Professor Oak's. Her room was nice, airy, sunny and, above all, luxurious. A four poster bed was an indulgence Misty was not accustomed to.

She checked the alarm clock beside her bed, which visually announced that it was 7.22am. Too early, her mind screamed. But her body and her mind were two separate things, and she somehow found herself putting her feet on the ground and slipping on a robe before heading downstairs. 

A quiet calm filled the house, indicating to Misty that the Oaks were obviously not morning people. She stole into the kitchen quietly, rummaging around cupboards for something to satisfy the hunger that was gnawing away at her. 

But somehow she found herself stopping. Slowly rising from a cupboard under the sink, her gaze turned instinctively to the window on her right, and she gulped at the sight it gave her. It was the Ketchum residence, a place she had been to so many times, every time she had been welcomed as a guest and treated with such hospitality she felt like a queen.

If she went there now, she knew what she would be greeted with. A shocked, maybe icy welcome, a sarcastic inquiry on how Gary was doing, and quite possibly a door slamming in her face. Well, that's how it would be if Ash was there. Delia Ketchum would probably be totally oblivious or extremely compassionate and let Misty in without any hesitation or questions.

Misty quickly shook her head, throwing away all thoughts of Ash as she did so. Breakfast was more important at this stage. As her toast was cooking in the toaster, she thought it would be safe for her to go outside briefly to grab the morning paper. No one was going to see her in her robe outside on an early Sunday morning.

She unlocked the front door and frowned in puzzlement when the paper wasn't at the first step. Where did the paper boys leave the papers in Pallet? She non-chalantly walked forward, now in the front yard, but also carefully checking that no one was out. She was stuck here for the next six days and she didn't want them filled with some nosey six-year old's taunting about her being outside in a robe.

Misty quickly found the paper on the front lawn, stooped down to pick it up and was unwrapping the cling wrap around it when a movement on her right caught her eye. Out of both fear and curiosity, she swiveled her head to where she had seen the movement, and immediately dropped the paper at what she saw.

"C'mon Pikachu, an early morning hike won't kill you!"

Misty automatically felt tears welling up in her eyes at the voice that had been absent from her life for a year now. She quickly wiped them away but stayed glued to the spot, frozen by fear and disbelief.

Ash didn't see her at first. His vision was cast sternly at stubborn Pikachu, who was refusing to start the day with a hike. Ash sighed, ready to give up all hope, and absent mindedly glanced at Professor Oak's lab, wondering if the professor would be up yet. But what he saw he was not prepared for in any way, and the protesting cries of Pikachu faded to the back of his mind as he stared in shock at Misty.

He hadn't seen her in a year, but she looked exactly the same. The unmistakable hair, the gentle face, the piercing blue eyes that had haunted him for so long. It was her alright. He had no doubt in his mind that she had been invited there by Gary, which somehow settled him slightly. After the Johto League, Ash had been clueless as to what had happened between Gary and Misty, and was still as worried as the day she left about her happiness. A happiness that he had selfishly denied her for a year before she left him. 

The two teenagers stared at each other for well over 30 seconds, until Pikachu suddenly ran up to Misty and jumped into her arms, nearly bowling her over in her shocked state.

"Pikachu Pi!" it exclaimed, happily nuzzling against Misty's arms. She slightly smiled, admitting to herself that she had missed the feel of Pikachu's fur against her skin.

"Hi Pikachu" she greeted it quietly. She stroked its back, but soon moved her gaze over to where Ash was still standing. He gulped in response and slowly walked over, their eyes still glued to each other. As he stood in front of her, Misty sighed, not sure whether she was happy to see him or not.

"H-hi Misty" Ash stammered, desperately wanting to rid the awkwardness between them. It wasn't like he hadn't been expecting it, but still hated it.

"How's it going, Ash?" Misty asked calmly, trying to shield the nervousness that was circulating throughout her.

"Not bad" Ash replied easily, sending Misty into a state of surprise. She was expecting to get an angry or sarcastic remark back in her face, but decided to play it to her advantage.

"Good, good." She went quiet, running out of conversation as she did so. She lowered her gaze to the ground, unable to meet him in the eyes. She couldn't deny there was something different about him, but she had to wonder if it was just the awkwardness of the moment. 

"Misty!" Misty's head whirled round as the front door to the Oak household opened and Gary walked out, fully dressed and a smile dominating his face. Misty inwardly cringed. This was not the most ideal situation in the world.

"Gary" Ash muttered, now also averting his stares. Gary raised an eyebrow and walked up to the two of them, casually placing an arm around Misty's shoulders as he did so.

"Hi Ash. You training for the Indigo League?" he asked. Ash meekly nodded, feeling about the size of a Digglet. "Cool. We might see you there." _We. _Could Gary have emphasised the word any more? 

"You never know" Ash mumbled. "Anyways, we're off to do some training. No time to waste." Pikachu's face fell in disappointment. It wanted to stay longer with Misty, and Ash sensed this, sending it a stern look to stop its forthcoming protests. 

"Okay. Good luck Ash" Gary said, his tone seemingly friendly. Ash nodded, his eyes finding their way back to Misty, who reluctantly handed back Pikachu. He wondered if he had just been imagining it, but he could've sworn Misty had tears in her eyes. 

"Bye Ash" she barely whispered. Ash slightly smiled and turned away, as did Misty and Gary.

"You've missed him, haven't you?" Gary immediately asked as they walked in. Misty was caught off guard but knew how terrible a liar she was, and she didn't want to be lying to Gary of all people.

"I never realised it until today." Gary sighed as she finished speaking and she mentally panicked. "Gary please, don't get mad, he...he was my best friend. I thought I'd buried him in the depths of my mind, but seeing him today...it just -"

"Flooded the memories back, huh?" Gary asked. Misty shrugged and walked up to him.

"But don't worry. Just don't. I came here to be with _you _and I've been with you this past year because I love you." As she finished speaking, she placed a soft kiss on his lips, as if she were confirming it. "Ash knew we could never be friends again, we both knew, it was too late by the time I left." Gary nodded and smiled down at her.

"Can you blame me for being just a little worried? Any guy who sees you would want you."

"You didn't want me when you first saw me" Misty teased. Gary laughed.

"That's cos I was too stupid to think straight. Look, if you've missed Ash, which I can tell you have, you can hang out with him while you're here, there is nothing stopping you. Not even me" he reassured her.

"I dunno" Misty said uncertainly. "He might not be too thrilled about the whole idea." 

"Are you kidding? He'd love to catch up with you again. Even before the whole incident last year, it was easy to see you two were the closest of friends."

"Yeah, before the arguing and the teasing became too serious and we drifted apart" Misty said sadly. "It might just be too awkward."

"But it might not" Gary argued. "You don't have to think about it now, don't even think about it. If you wanna cruise over there at any time, don't let me or Grandpa or anyone stop you, okay?" He searched her eyes for her approval and she slowly nodded, a smile coming to her lips.

"Thankyou Gary. I never thought you'd be the one saying something like that."

"Yeah yeah. I just know Ash would find you a whole lot easier to forgive than he would find for me" Gary pointed out. Misty nodded and suddenly realised she was still in her robe.

"Hey, I better go get changed" she slightly laughed. 

"Well you've got a whole damn ensuite to yourself, don't think you'll have any trouble doing that" Gary grinned. Misty smiled and quickly kissed his cheek.

"Be back in a minute" she promised. Gary watched her run up the stairs and couldn't help feeling a twinge of panic in his heart. He was wondering if he had just made a huge mistake by letting Misty visit Ash. But it wasn't like he could stop her from going. Besides, he told himself, she had already told him twice that she loved him, and that was enough of a barrier for Ash to have to get over if he ever had the urge to grab his girl. Gary sighed, mentally yelled at himself for worrying so needlessly and walked into the kitchen to start preparing some kind of breakfast.

A/N: And there is chapter one! Yeeha! lol, anyways, please review, egoshippings are not my forte so you gotta be brutally honest! This was not easy for me to write! Thanks guys, you're the coolest! (o^_^o)


	2. A Day in the Mountains

DISCLAIMER: Do I have to do this every chapter? Sigh. I don't own Pokémon.

A/N: Oooh, chapter 2! How exciting! I don't have much to say cos I don't even really know how this chapter's gonna go, I just really need to type something.

It would only be 28 hours until Misty saw Ash again, although she, of course, didn't know this. Gary had gone to train in the mountains, leaving at some ungodly hour of the morning that Misty couldn't commit herself to waking up to. Instead she said goodbye to him the night before, cautioning him to be careful and to be back before it got dark.

Now she was lying sprawled on a rock in the front yard, the same rock Ash had been sprawled on when she had informed him that Gary was off on another journey. The wisps of cloud danced above her, aided by the gentle breeze, and she sighed. She hated to be alone for too long, as boredom always came into the picture.

She softly started humming to herself, the sun and the soft tune contributing to an increasing amount of fatigue within her. She was planning to drift off into an easy slumber, by no fault of her own however, and slowly closed her eyes.

It was only another minute before Misty heard a familiar voice and she sat up, abruptly halting her dozing session. Turning to her left, she could see Ash talking to his mother outside the door. Delia looked somewhat concerned and Ash looked like he was trying to reassure her. She could soon hear the conversation clearly.

"Mom! I'll be alright, I've done this a million times before" Ash said in exasperation. 

"You just be careful, those mountains are dangerous" Delia cautioned. Ash smiled and placed a light peck on his mother's cheek.

"I'll see you at six" he promised. Delia nodded and slowly closed the door behind him as he set off in the direction of the mountains. Misty, thinking she had lost all common sense within her, suddenly sprung to her feet and ran in his direction.

"Ash!" she yelled, causing him to halt and turn around to face her. She approached him but was clueless as to what she actually wanted to say. "Ash, w-where are you going?" she asked half-heartedly. 

"The mountains" Ash shrugged. "Why isn't Gary with you?"

"He's training today. Got up at six or something to leave" Misty explained.

"Oh. I see. Guess that means he'd blow his top if he knew you were talking to me" Ash predicted, starting to walk away.

"Ash, wait!" Misty said desperately, quickening her pace to stay beside him. "He doesn't mind. He told me he doesn't mind."

"So what, you needed his permission or something?" Ash asked coldly. Misty was stunned into silence but wasn't going to give up that easily. She continued to walk beside him, her conversation skills now completely drained from her. "What do you want?" Ash finally asked.

"I…um…" Misty stammered, once again losing words. "I wanna come with you" she blurted out, immediately cringing as she did so. Ash stopped walking and eyed her carefully.

"Why?" he asked in surprise.

"Because I'm bored, I've got nothing to do" Misty replied.

"I can't be a substitute for Gary. You of all people should know that" Ash sighed. 

"Come on, Ash! Here we are with the one opportunity to pick up where we left off, and you're just stomping all over it!" Misty exclaimed as she begun to lose patience.

"Well I don't wanna pick up where we left off!" Ash suddenly yelled. "Don't you remember how our friendship was hanging by threads? How unhappy you were? I don't wanna put you through that again!" 

"But you won't!" Misty argued. "Please, Ash…I swear you won't" she said softly. She searched his eyes silently, seeking his confirmation. He sighed and slightly smiled.

"I'm coming back at six. You think you can hang around me for six hours and survive?" he asked.

"Yup!" Misty said eagerly. Ash slightly laughed and they continued walking.

"Misty…why are you suddenly so eager to see me? I thought once you left it was, y'know, no turning back" Ash shrugged.

"Well I'm turning back for a little bit. We were friends for a long time Ash, it's not like I can cut you off altogether. I tried that and, this is the first time I've admitted this…it was hard. Painful even" Misty confessed. 

"I thought you wouldn't care" Ash mumbled. "We drifted apart so badly, you yourself said things would never be the same."

"The facts are, things will never be the same. It's not like we're screaming at each other and swearing and whatever, but the awkwardness is worse than that, don't you think?" Misty asked rhetorically. Ash slowly nodded. "I mean, even now we're finding it kinda hard to communicate."

"Well I haven't seen you in a year" Ash pointed out. "I'm not exactly gonna be able to leap into conversation with you straight away."

"I know" Misty nodded. Then she quickly shook her head in a flurry. "Okay, we can do better than this" she grinned.

"What do you mean?" Ash asked as they rapidly approached the looming mountains.

"It's been a year, surely we have stuff to catch up on" Misty laughed. "Got yourself a girrrrlfriend yet?" she asked teasingly. Ash winced at the thought.

"No , don't even go there" he said stubbornly. Misty only laughed again.

"Okay okay. Hmm…any new pokémon?"

"Well, Bulbasaur evolved…"

"Really?!" Misty exclaimed unexpectedly. "I thought it didn't want to!"

Ash shrugged. "I dunno. Must've seen the better side of it. So, um…how are things with you and Gary?"

Misty paused. "Everything's great. Really great. I…I can't imagine doing anything else really" she said softly. Ash shook his head in disbelief.

"Who would've thought we'd be having this conversation huh?" he suddenly asked.

"I'm trying not to dwell on that" Misty replied. "Come on, let's just go, I wanna see if your pokémon still remember me."

The two of them walked for another hour, trying to make small talk but finding it harder with every step they took. The mountains came towards them faster than they expected, and something suddenly hit Misty.

"Hey, wait a minute, where's Pikachu?" she asked.

"It's getting a break today, I kinda wore it out the other day with the hike. The other ones have been slacking a bit so they get the pleasure of climbing up the mountain" Ash grinned.

Misty weakly smiled back. "You still love 'em as much, don't you" she said softly, making it a statement instead of a question.

"Of course I do" Ash said quickly. "Pokémon are my life."

"I think it's that way with Gary too" Misty said. "They're all he ever talks about."

"Well, I don't always talk about them" Ash protested. "But it's not like there's anything else I can do."

"You could go to school" Misty suggested, to which Ash immediately wrinkled his nose in disgust and shook his head. "You could…um, you could get a job."

"A job?" Ash spluttered. "Doing what? I can't do anything else but train Pokémon."

"But remember when I was with you and Brock? We went out and occasionally we worked to get money, it was fun" Misty reminded him.

"Since you left Mist, I've found nothing else to do except train" Ash said softly. "It's all I can do to stop myself going crazy." 

"Crazy?" Misty repeated. "You've been going crazy?"

"Don't you understand? You gave me the motivation to keep going, even when it looked like all hope was lost. You were the one who believed in me, even if you denied it. I could tell" Ash said wisely. "And now that you're gone, especially with my rival, it kinda ruined that."

Misty was stunned into silence. She had always believed in Ash, but she thought she had never been so obvious about it, especially after they had started drifting apart. She continued to walk beside him, the trek becoming steeper now, much like the questions in her mind. Maybe she shouldn't have left. She didn't think it would destroy Ash as much as he claimed it had. He had said he was happy for her…

"I'm sorry Mist" Ash suddenly apologised. "Please don't go thinking it's your fault I've lost the interest in training."

"Lost interest?!" Misty exclaimed. "No! Ash you can't! You're such a good trainer, you can't give up now, not after all this time!" Her sentences were becoming more breathless, as the climb up the hill had gotten steeper.

"I haven't lost interest entirely" Ash shrugged. 

"Good" Misty said stubbornly, folding her arms in front of her. "Because if you ever gave it up it would be a huge waste and a massive loss to the pokémon world."

Ash stared at her with wide eyes. "You really think that?"

"Of course I do" Misty said softly. "Just cos I'm travelling with Gary doesn't mean I have to take sides. You have more of a soul with pokémon than he does. In fact…" She trailed off, turned around, and gazed at Pallet below her, which was now rapidly declining as they climbed higher. "He just seems to use them for power." There was an uncomfortable silence as they both took in what Misty had just said. She seemed to be asking herself if she really meant those words. 

"Misty…you don't have to say stuff like that to make me feel better. I know perfectly well how Gary operates, but as long as he's making you happy, it doesn't bother me" Ash declared, standing beside her and looking out over his hometown. Misty turned to him with a small smile.

"Thank you, Ash." She paused and turned back toward the track at the same time he did. "Are we anywhere near the top yet?" she asked wearily.

"I'm not going up to the top. We'll probably stop in another five minutes" Ash explained.

"Oh thank God" Misty muttered, holding a hand to her back. "I think I've twisted something that shouldn't be twisted." Ash slightly laughed as they resumed walking.

The day went with only minimal hitches, only slight croaks when Ash's pokémon became too tired to venture on. He couldn't blame them, and returned them to their pokéballs at 5.30, much to Misty's disappointment. 

"Oh Ash, can't I just play a game with them?" she pleaded.

"Sorry Mist, they're wiped out, they wouldn't be able to handle it. The League's only a week away, I can't afford to tire them out too quickly" Ash replied.

"Yeah, you're right" Misty agreed with a sigh. The two of walked back to Pallet in the increasing dusk, silence becoming a new accomplice to them as they each kept their own thoughts to themselves. Ash's house was situated before Professor Oak's, and Misty was quick to decline Ash's invitation to stay for dinner.

"I'm sorry Ash, but I really shouldn't. Gary's probably home by now, and…"

"You don't want him getting suspicious" Ash finished. He shook his head in disbelief and sighed. "That's cool Mist, I understand that."

"No Ash, it's not because of Gary" Misty said hurriedly. She nearly added the lethal sentence after that - _it's because of you_ - but was quick to stop herself. She couldn't allow herself to have too much fun with him. It had been a fun day, she admitted that much to herself. But that was all. 

"Whatever" Ash shrugged. "Just…I might see ya later."

"You will see me later" Misty said emphatically. Ash smiled, unconvinced, and walked into his house with a small wave to her. She weakly smiled back and slowly made her way towards the Oak lab. She checked her watch. It was nearly six, which meant Gary would probably already be back.

She cautiously walked through the front door and made her way to the kitchen, the smell of a cooking dinner slowly luring her there. She entered the kitchen to be greeted by Gary's back. He was standing over a pot, stirring something Misty couldn't see.

"Hi Misty" he started quietly. 

"Hi babes. I missed you today" Misty replied, walking towards him. She suddenly stopped when he slowly turned around, his eyes resembling ice crystals and his tone of voice not much different.

"You missed me while you were out tramping with Ash?" he said accusingly. Misty gulped, but knew she had a defense.

"Gary, nothing happened. You know that. You said so yourself that I was 'allowed' to see Ash" she pointed out.

"I didn't say you could spend half a day alone in the mountains with him!" Gary exclaimed.

"So what, you have to decide how I live now? God Gary, I didn't think you were so controlling" Misty said in amazement.

"I'm not being controlling" Gary said defensively. "It just freaks me out that you spent that much time with him."

"That much time after one year of not seeing him at all, remember. Come on Gary, be reasonable" Misty sighed. "He was my best friend. We were just catching up. How did you find out anyways?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Grandpa saw you two leaving, and he knew where Ash was going. Didn't exactly cover your tracks, did you Mist?" Gary said coldly. Misty was shocked into anger and she narrowed her eyes.

"What the hell did you just say?"

"I said you didn't exactly cover your tracks" Gary repeated monotonously. Misty continued to glare at him, unable to believe what he was saying.

"I'm warning you, Gary Oak. You are very close to crossing a line you were nowhere near crossing yesterday. I don't know what's gotten into you, but I hope for your sake you're in a better mood tomorrow" she said firmly.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Gary asked in frustration.

"You'll know if you don't shape up tomorrow" Misty snapped. With that she whirled around and quickly left the kitchen, unable to face Gary any longer. It wasn't their first and only argument, but it was over something so stupid and untrue. He had been totally contradicting himself in the process, after actually encouraging her to visit Ash the day before. 

Misty stormed upstairs, implanting her anger into the ground with every step she took. But by the time she reached her room, she realised something else too. She was confused. And not just about Gary's sudden mood swings. How could Ash have lost all hope in training just because she left? She hadn't thought that was possible in a million years. He'd done well in every league he'd competed in, and he loved his pokémon so much. It killed her to hear him speak like that. 

With a sigh, Misty locked the door to her room, not wanting to face even an apology from Gary. As far as she was concerned, she had heard enough from him for one day. All she could do now was pray that tomorrow would be a better day for all concerned.

A/N: Chapter two completed! Oh you have NO idea how long it took me to write this chapter! I don't even know why it took me so long, I guess cos it's hard to when I'm at school. Anyways, please review and keep reading and all that. Only two more chapters to go, woohoo! 


	3. Confessions

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon. Oh but if I did…

A/N: Alright, here we are, halfway there people! I swear this gets more exciting, I know it does, even though I haven't even started this chapter as I sit here typing this A/N, hahaha. Ah well, let's get going anyways.

"Ash? Ash! Ashton Ketchum, wake up!" Ash slowly opened his eyes and tried to focus his vision on his mother standing over him. It was barely light outside, but he didn't have the energy or enough sleep-dust out of his eyes to check his watch for the time.

"What's going on, Mom?" he yawned. He refused to do chores at this hour of the morning.

"I hope you haven't forgotten that you're leaving for the Pokémon League tomorrow" Delia Ketchum said teasingly. 

"Of course I haven't forgotten, but that's tomorrow, not today." Ash yawned again and covered himself with more blankets. "For now I think I should enjoy the spare time." 

"Oh no you don't" Delia protested, grabbing her son's arm and hoisting him to a sitting position. "You are going to train today. I think you've been slacking off a bit, don't you?" she asked accusingly.

"I haven't slacked off" Ash argued. "I've been training, we've all been up to the mountains, what more do you expect?"

"I just happen to know that that trip to the mountains four days ago was not exactly a heavy load now, was it?" Delia asked with a grin.

"What are you talking about, Mom?" Ash inquired with a puzzled look on his face.

"You were taking a stroll through the hills with a certain Misty Waterflower, if Professor Oak's sources prove true" Delia informed him.

"Oh come on, Misty just tagged along to see my pokémon again. She missed them" Ash shrugged.

"I think she missed something else, too" Delia grinned, nudging her son teasingly.

"Mom, seriously, we caught up on a lot of stuff but it was awkward and everything too" Ash pointed out. He also noticed that Misty hadn't come by to visit him again since that day, like she said she would, and he could put it down to either Gary's jealously or her wanting to get on with her life without him. They'd had fun catching up and laughing about old times, but it wasn't the same as the old times. They both knew it.

"Well just don't let her slip away again" Delia said warningly. "Because I know how much you…" She trailed off and looked away, causing Ash to raise an eyebrow.

"What do you know?" he asked. Delia shrugged non-commitedly. "Besides, she's happy with Gary. I saw it the day she told us she was leaving. She was happier than I'd seen her in a whole year." 

"You don't know that for sure" Delia said. "That was a year ago. A lot can happen in a year."

"Mom, don't worry about it. It's none of your business and I can deal with it myself. I have for the past year" Ash said. 

"Yeah, which is why Professor Oak is so concerned about your training commitments" Delia announced.

"What? Mom, what did Professor Oak say?"

"He just said you'd been a little distracted since Misty left, that maybe you were regretting letting her go or something. I don't know honey, I'm just being Mrs Concerned Mother" Delia smiled. "But I just know how close you two were before she left."

"We _were_ close" Ash agreed. "But we weren't by the time she left. I let her go because she wanted to, because it made her happy."

"But did it make _you_ happy?" Delia asked, smoothing back his static hair. Ash went quiet and when he didn't reply, Delia sighed and kissed the top of his head. "Oh sweetie. You did it for her. I'm proud of you, but at the same time I can't help feeling sorry for you for doing something that would make you unhappy."

"It's okay, Mom. Really." Ash smiled up at his mother. He loved her so much, no matter how protective and concerned she always seemed about him. She always seemed to understand what he was going through. "I've just gotta get focused a bit more than I have been."

"Well you look after yourself then. I can't watch you all the time with you away so often, even if I wanted to" Delia said. 

"Yeah, just…don't worry, Mom. I'm okay." After saying these words, Ash gently nudged Pikachu awake, who threatened to protest through electricity. "Pikachu, c'mon, we gotta get an early start" Ash said.

"Pika Pika" Pikachu said sleepily, sitting up with a yawn. "Pikachu Pi?" It was inquiring over Misty and Ash sadly shook his head.

"No buddy, we're not visiting Misty. I have told you that every day since we ran into her, what makes you think today is going to be any different?" Ash rhetorically asked. Pikachu shrugged and climbed onto Ash's shoulder. 

"I've made you a big breakfast to start your day" Delia announced.

"You always make me a big breakfast, Mom" Ash smiled, knowing that he would soon miss the privileges of staying home. 

"Well I'll go get it ready. You get yourself ready, tomorrow's the big day!" With another kiss on her son's head, Delia rushed off downstairs, leaving Ash to think about everything that had just passed between them. Everything his mother had pointed out was true. He couldn't deny that.

With a heavy sigh and his heart resembling a bag of bricks, Ash stood up, gave a fleeting glance to the Oak household, and started making his trip to the bathroom to get washed up.

************

__

Misty, wake up. Open your eyes. Come on Misty, you can do this.

With a yawn, Misty obeyed her brain's commands and sat up in bed. She opened her eyes after a brief stretch and slightly shrieked at the sight of Gary sitting at the end of her bed.

"Gary! W-what are you doing?" she asked shakily.

"I was gonna wake you up. It's 10, y'know" Gary replied.

"10?! God, you should've woken me up earlier, I'm so sorry" Misty apologised, hurriedly rushing out of bed and rummaging round her bag for clothes to attire herself in for their last day in Pallet.

"It's okay. Really, it's not like we need to be up for anything" Gary said gently. 

"Don't you have some training to do or something?" Misty asked.

"I thought I'd take a day off it. Spend some time with you" Gary announced.

"Gary, you can't do that the day before you leave! That's crazy! Come on, go out and do some training. You wanna do well in this tournament, don't you?" Misty pointed out.

"Of course I do. But I don't wanna be ignoring you in the process." _Or driving you into Ash Ketchum's arms_, Gary silently added. 

"You're not ignoring me" Misty reassured him. She noticed Gary avert his gaze and suddenly it dawned on her. "Oh my god, you…you don't trust me" she whispered in disbelief.

"Well, it's not really like that…" Gary muttered unconvincedly.

"Not _really_? How about not at all? Gary, come on, don't get all protective on me. When have I ever, in our last year together, been swaying towards someone else?" Misty asked.

"Well, let's see, how about a six hour trip up the mountains with your ex. Sounds extremely cozy, Mist" Gary said bitterly.

"Oh grow up! For God's sake, I thought you'd gotten over that! It was four days ago! Let it go, nothing happened!" Misty exclaimed. "And who said anything about him being my ex? I certainly didn't."

"Maybe so, but he might as well be" Gary shrugged. Misty went quiet and eyed him carefully.

"Gary, what are you talking about?" she asked quietly.

"I'm talking about the fact that he's been way too distracted for his own good this last year. His ranking as a trainer has dropped more than you know. Funny how this all happened as soon as you left" Gary sarcastically mused.

"I can't believe I never saw it before" Misty marveled, shaking her head as she did so.

"Saw what?" Gary asked cautiously.

"How protective you are, how defensive, how everything has to go your way or the world falls apart. Well Gary, let me tell you something. The world, _my_ world, doesn't start and end with you. In fact, for five years of my life, Ash and Brock were the biggest parts of my world. Not you. You have to come to terms with that. And if you can't, well…" Misty trailed off and stared at the ground.

"No…Mist, no. Don't say what I think you're gonna say" Gary pleaded.

"It's been four days since I went hiking with Ash, and you've done nothing but nag me about it, even after you gave me 'permission' to see him. And it's been hell for me. Four days was bad enough, how long is it gonna go on for? Another week, a month, more than a month?" Misty sighed as she finished speaking. Gary was shocked into silence at her words, and the ones she said next chilled him even more. "I can't live like that. It was bad enough having my best friend shut me out, but to have my boyfriend do nothing but accuse me seems worse."

"Oh Mist, I -"

"Just, don't" Misty said, holding up her hand before he could continue. "I don't wanna hear it."

"But if you don't hear it I won't get a chance to explain myself" Gary said.

"You shouldn't have to explain yourself, Gary! You should just understand!" Misty exclaimed, finally losing all patience with him. "And if I went and saw him today, what would you say, huh? What would you do?"

"I…well, you wouldn't be going to see him in the first place" Gary announced.

"And why is that?" Misty asked heatedly. 

"Because…well, why would you want to?" Gary shrugged. 

"I don't know, maybe I just feel like it" Misty said through clenched teeth. "In fact, I do feel like it. If you'll excuse me, I'm going to take a shower and head on over to the Ketchum residence." With that she stormed off into the bathroom, slamming and locking the door behind her as she did. A few seconds later she could hear Gary banging on the door, pleading with her to talk to him, but her response to this was to turn up the shower radio louder than Gary had ever heard it.

"Come on Mist, I'm sorry! Just hear me out, please!" Gary almost begged. Misty could barely hear him by now, as the shower radio drowned out his voice. But it couldn't drown out the tears that sprang to her eyes, and try as she might to stop them spilling over, she knew it was hopeless. How could so much have happened between them in four measly days? It was beyond her. Gary's overwhelming jealousy was making them drift apart, even she could see that now. 

Gary finally sulked away, and Misty didn't want to spend too long in the shower. She had to see Ash. She had promised him after they had gotten back from the mountains, and she was not one to easily break promises. 

Ten minutes later she had hurriedly changed and was briskly walking over to the Ketchum house. She couldn't help hesitating as she reached the front door. Should she be doing this? But then she shrugged and knocked twice. Nothing was stopping her, certainly not Gary. The door swung open and she let out a small squeal of surprise at who had answered her hesitant knocks.

"Brock!" she exclaimed, immediately initiating a hug that lasted for at least thirty seconds and almost seemed to make up for lost time.

"Well well, little Miss Waterflower, how would we be?" Brock asked as they broke apart.

"I've had better days" Misty mumbled. 

"Uh oh, trouble in paradise" Brock grinned. He had been sad, even remorseful, at watching Misty run into his best friend's rival's arms, but he was a bystander and he knew it. The whole thing had revolved around Gary, Ash and herself. That was something Brock would forever be grateful for. It had seemed like a subtle deathmatch those few days at the Pokémon League. 

"Something like that" Misty shrugged, walking in as Brock held the door wider as a silent invitation. 

"You don't look too upset" Brock observed, but wished he'd shut his mouth. He knew Misty was one to shield her emotions from the outside world, and he had no right to go assuming what she was feeling. 

"Ah Brock, what was that saying? Something about looks being deceiving" Misty smiled. "It's okay. Really. Gary's just being a bit of an asshole" she said bluntly.

"W-what?" Brock stuttered out, slightly shocked by her blunt attitude. "What happened?" It was at this point that Ash walked in, his eyes instantly widening at the sight of Misty standing in his house. She turned to him with a somewhat sad smile on her lips.

"Hi Ash" she greeted him quietly. 

"Misty...hi, h-how's it going?" Ash tried to regain some sort of composure but he was finding it hard. She could only give him that sad smile, making his heart beat in anticipation and anxiousness.

"Wanna take a walk or something?" Misty asked non-chalantly. Ash nodded, and Misty turned to Brock again. "I'll catch up with you soon, okay? Promise." She sealed it with a small hug and Brock nodded.

"Sure thing. I'll see ya later." He pulled away and walked to the kitchen, where chores were undoubtedly waiting to be done. Ash slowly walked up to Misty, taking in everything about her, in case this was the last time he saw her.

"Come on, let's get going" Misty urged, opening the front door and leading the way. Ash followed and eventually came to be walking beside her in the front yard. "Before you ask, me and Gary have hit a rough spot" she started. "And it's one of those rough spots that can affect a whole relationship."

"Really?" Ash asked in surprise. "That's heavy."

"I dunno" Misty shrugged. "Maybe it was meant to happen." She turned to him with a smile. "My once perfect image of Gary is starting to show some cracks, cracks that I alone can't fix. It's..." She sighed and stared at the ground. 

"Is this because of the other day?" Ash asked cautiously. Misty nodded but was quick to reassure him.

"Gary's just assuming false things" she explained. "It's causing a few rifts. And quite frankly, if he can't be willing to accept the fact that you were and probably always will be a huge part of my life, then I can't be bothered with him."

"So...what are you gonna do?" Ash asked after a few moments silence.

"I don't know" Misty replied in a whisper. "Maybe I'm just being spoilt. I've been mostly so happy these last twelve months, and now to have one little obstacle -"

"_Mostly _happy?" Ash repeated. 

"Well, it hasn't been without its bumps" Misty shrugged. "But this seems to be a hurdle Gary just can't jump. I don't wanna hang around forever waiting for him to get over it."

"Trust me Mist, you are not being spoilt. You are entitled to your happiness. Unfortunately, I learnt that too late" Ash weakly smiled. 

"I just wish he'd...I wish he would..." Misty's words were becoming shaky and Ash couldn't deny observing the tears in her eyes. "He's so..." The first tear spilled over and the first sob escaped. As an instant reaction to this, Ash embraced her in a comforting hug, letting her literally cry into his shoulder.

"Oh Misty, shhh, come on, it's okay" he said soothingly, gently rubbing her heaving back. "He'll get over it sooner or later."

"Th-that's the thing" Misty managed to choke out. "I...I don't think he will." Her words were muffled in Ash's shoulder, but he heard them loud and clear. 

"Yes he will. He'll have to. Shhh Mist, shush" he said quietly. He slightly pulled away and proceeded to wipe away the tears that were threatening to temporarily stain her cheeks. "It's okay, it's gonna be okay" he whispered. He noticed her tears subsiding as he wiped away the ones that had already fallen, and she had gone unusually quiet.

"I'm sorry. Ash I'm so sorry..." she whispered.

"For what?" Ash asked quietly.

"For leaving you. I shouldn't have. I was so stupid" Misty sighed.

"No you weren't. You did the right thing, you did what was best for you. Don't you dare go regretting something that made you so happy" Ash said sternly.

"But it's over now" Misty said, shaking her head as she did.

"Over? Forever?" Ash asked in astonishment.

"I can't deal with Gary like that." Misty paused and half-noticed that she was clutching onto Ash even tighter. "I just can't."

"Look, just hang in there. Things will get better."

__

What are you saying, Ketchum? Do you want her to stay with Gary or something? 

"I don't want them to get better" Misty whispered.

"What?!" Ash exclaimed, shocked by her words. 

"I can't be around him, after what he's said, what he's done, the way everything has to go his way or the world crumbles" Misty declared. She stared into the warm eyes of the best friend she had left behind, mulling over her regrets and wishes. "I can't be around him when I'm lying to him."

"But like you said, nothing happened that day, we just -"

"Oh I'm not lying about that" Misty said. "I'm lying about..." She sighed and nearly collapsed at the weight of what she had to say, but stood her ground. She had to. "The other day he asked me if I loved him. And I said yes."

Ash gulped at her words. To him they were cursed, words he'd never dreamt of hearing but that were now a harsh reality. She was in love with his rival. And Ash was in love with...

"So you said yes" Ash repeated, interrupting his own train of thought. 

"That's what I was lying about. I didn't realise it then, but I do now" Misty said. "I thought I loved him. I guess I put myself under that illusion, ignored his little annoyances that accumulated. It's like he doesn't know real life. It has to be a picture perfect world or it's not right. But I know that's not how life works. Still, I ignored it cos I told myself I was happier than I had been with you." She sighed again before she continued. "Again, I lied, though that was to myself."

"You weren't happier? Misty, you've gotta be kidding me, the day you left, you..." Ash trailed off at the painful memory.

"The day I left I...God, I don't know! I just know that I can't be around him for much longer without going crazy!" Misty suddenly exclaimed as more tears threatened to fall. 

"Well then...you're gonna hafta do something about it" Ash pointed out.

"I know" Misty nodded. "Tonight. It has to be tonight."

"Why tonight? Can't it wait until after the League?" Ash asked.

"No, it can't. Because I am not going to the League with him" Misty announced. 

"And does he know this?" Ash inquired cautiously.

"Not yet. He will tonight though. He'll know when I arrive at the League without him" Misty said shakily, her nerves suddenly hitting her in a mad rush. "He'll know when I...when I..." She lost words and hastily came to the theory that bluntness got through to people better than if it was drawn out. "Ash, I wanna go to the League with you and Brock" she proclaimed. Ash almost fell over in pleasurable shock, but quickly regained his composure to reply to her.

"Misty, are...you sure about this? You've been with Gary for a year, and you just wanna up and go with me and Brock? Why?" he asked. 

"Because...because..." Misty stuttered over her words, unsure of how to express her feelings. "Ash, I've only just come to realise how badly I regret leaving you. And there is a reason." She went quiet and scanned his eyes again, debating over whether she should be telling him this. She knew she had to now, it wasn't fair to leave him hanging like this.

"Mist, you know you can tell me anything" Ash said reassuredly, his heart ready to break a few ribs with its incredibly fast beat.

"This isn't just anything" Misty whispered. She took in a deep breath and closed her eyes. "I guess you've heard of that saying, 'you don't know what you've got till it's gone.'"

"I've stumbled across it somewhere" Ash shrugged.

"Well up until now I bet you had no idea how much that applied to me" Misty smiled faintly. "Because I thought about you every day. I wondered where you were, what you were doing, if...if you were thinking of me."

"I _was _thinking of you" Ash said a little too hastily, causing Misty to look up at him in surprise. "Every day, in fact."

"Really? Wow" Misty breathed in an excited tone. "Well the thing is, I didn't know what I had in you until I left you behind. And I know I tried to push it out of my mind, but I couldn't deny it, no matter how damn hard I tried. What I had in you is something I will never have in Gary. I tried to deny it that whole year, but when I first saw you the other day, I knew."

"What did you know?" Ash asked, almost desperately, dying of curiosity. 

"I knew I loved you" Misty blurted out, immediately cringing with regret at her rushed and unthought of words. "Shit, it wasn't meant to come out like that, I'm so sorry" she apologised, unusually cursing as she did.

"Don't apologise" Ash said almost forcefully. "Don't. Because that's all I've wanted to hear from you for the past year" he confessed, slowly stroking her cheek with one lone finger.

"W-what?" Misty stuttered. "Are you serious?"

"If I wasn't serious would I do this?" Ash asked, and after speaking his brief sentence, leaned down and kissed the one thing he had desired, who could only respond in her overwhelmed state by kissing him back with as much passion and love she had stored in her for the past year. How could she have denied it before? Especially after starting to notice Gary's little niggles...

Gary was the last thing on Misty's mind until she pulled away and smiled into Ash's eyes. It was out of the corner of her eye she saw what would shatter the magic moment, and she quickly turned to her right. There he was, Gary Oak, jaw dropped at the sight that was plainly in his view. 

The blood from Misty's face drained and Ash turned to where she was looking. His reaction was similar and the two of them stood there, still holding each other, staring at Gary in shock. Gary didn't say anything, didn't do anything. Until he ran inside, not taking a second glance back. Not even long enough to see Misty running after him, abandoning a clearly shocked Ash and desperately calling his name.

He saw nor heard none of it. He only saw the horrific scene that he had stumbled on, a scene he had played in his mind and that had now fabricated. And now, even as he heard Misty's footsteps and desperate pleas to come back, he ran faster, knowing what he had to do and how to do it. 

A/N: Ahhh! LOL, sorry, I'm just hyped. Anyways, next chapter is the final one, so gimme your reviews at the end of that cos that's the conclusion of it all! What is Gary doing?? Ah, it's all in the mind of yours truly! Hehehe, sorry guys, next chapter now, woohoo! 


	4. Closing the Door

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Pokémon.

A/N: Oh wow! Last one! Woohoo! I'm gonna try not to make it too long cos I wanna put it up now, I'm sick of it just sitting here. Plus I've had to retype the last half of it, so sorry about that, it might not be as good as it's supposed to be. Anyways, read on, faithful readers, lol.

"Gary! Gary, please, come back!" Misty yelled throughout the Oak house/lab. He was faster than she had given him credit for, and now she had no idea where he had gotten to. She had to explain herself, it wasn't fair to him. 

She ran upstairs, thinking he might have taken refuge in his room, but found his room empty. Panic filled her heart as she tried to picture the lands and rooms of Professor Oak's extensive property. It was too big for her to find him within minutes, and she collapsed on Gary's bed, burying her face in her hands. It was far too much deja vu for her. Ash had walked in on the exact scene one year ago. 

She sub-consciously heard a door slam and her head instinctively shot up. It had to be him. Only it was coming from the rarely used attic. Maybe that was his refuge, his spot away from the world, Misty briefly thought, before she leapt off his bed and ran towards the attic. Sure enough, the door was shut and locked, and Misty pounded her fist hopelessly on its wooden exterior.

"Gary! Come on Gary, please, open the door!" She got no response and sighed, deciding to use the fatal line that was never true. "It...it wasn't what it looked like." Again, no response reached her, and she quickly used her initiative. "Gary, if you don't open this door, I'll open it myself" she threatened. As silence replied her again, she took a hair pin out of her now frenzied hair and began to pick the lock. She hadn't been taught it from anyone, but television shows had seen to parts of her education as a child.

The lock gave way and she barged through, immediately screaming at the sight in front of her. Gary was standing by the lone window, his eyes blankly gazing at the scenery in front of him, and a no doubt loaded gun pointed to his head.

"Gary don't!" Misty yelled as she ran up and knocked the gun out of his hand, causing it to crash on the floor without a single shot being fired. Gary turned to her, anger flashing in his deep brown eyes.

"What the hell did you do that for?!" he demanded to know.

"Because you have a life ahead of you, there's no need for you to go and cut it off early yourself!" Misty replied, feeling tears well up in her eyes.

"A life without you huh?" Gary replied quietly. Misty didn't respond and Gary sighed heavily. "I know what I saw. I had to see it coming. You knew all along, didn't you?" he asked sadly.

"Gary..." He looked at her sternly, just wanting a simple answer. "Well, I guess I did know, but I didn't let myself know, you know?" Misty stuttered. "I didn't wanna realise it cos I was so happy with you. But the past week has just brought to light all the little annoyances, how much they accumulated and everything."

"Well I'm sorry" Gary said sincerely. "I'm really sorry. I never wanted to make you unhappy."

"You didn't. Not until this last week, when I stopped being so ignorant and let myself realise my true feelings. I never wanted it to happen like this Gary, the last year has been mostly so wonderful." Misty gently touched his cheek, but not in the way she had in the last year. This touch was more sympathetic than loving, and Gary knew it.

"I can't stop you" Gary sighed. "I had this nagging feeling all along that your heart was really somewhere else. So go where your heart goes, Mist."

"Promise me this won't affect your training" Misty said sternly. Gary didn't reply and Misty narrowed her eyes. "Gary, I want you to not lose hope in your training because of me. You are such a good trainer, you have so much talent. Not potential, talent. There is a difference. You have to show the rest of the world what I mean. And none of this suicide crap. I'm not your life, and if I am then you need to learn to let go, not go putting bullets in your head. That doesn't solve anything."

"I know, it was just...I dunno, my crazy reaction" Gary weakly smiled. There was a small silence and he uncomfortably ran his hand through his hair. "I guess I'll be seeing you at the League then, huh?" 

"Absolutely. I am not cutting you out of my life altogether if you'll do the same with me. And you never know, maybe you and Ash can resolve your differences" Misty shrugged. "Either way, I'll be at your matches if they don't clash with his. And I don't care what he says. He doesn't have to go, but I do."

"Misty you don't have to do that" Gary shook his head.

"Yes, I do. I wanna see how far you get, cos I know you can get far. I _know _you can. If you just don't let this get you down" Misty pointed out.

"Okay okay, point taken" Gary laughed slightly. "I'll be there."

"And you'll give me a call while you're there, right?" Misty asked.

"I dunno if that's such a good idea" Gary replied.

"Well if you ever think it is, if you ever wanna talk or anything, you know my cell number. Don't let Ash stop you" Misty said. 

"I'll see what happens" Gary compromised. Another silence ensued and Misty bent down and picked up the gun that had threatened to do even more damage. 

"Put this back. Now" she instructed. Gary took the weapon off her and walked over to the shelf he had found it. He knew the family heirlooms and secrets up here, and the guns were just one of them. It was the first thought that had entered his head when he had seen Ash and Misty, and he was beginning to realise how much of an idiot he had been to give up his dreams over one failed relationship.

She walked up to him and gave him one last hug as the gun was put back in its place. "I'll see you at the League, champ" she grinned, using the nickname she had acquired for him somewhere along the way.

"See ya there" Gary replied, breaking away and looking into her eyes for the final time. "Make sure you let Ash know how incredibly lucky he is. Cos you know that saying."

"What one?" Misty asked.

"If you love something, let it go. If it comes back, it shows that the love is mutual. Something like that" Gary shrugged. "Definitely applies to you two."

"Thanks Gary. That's sweet" Misty smiled. "This isn't goodbye, remember. This is see ya. So see ya later." With that she turned and hurriedly walked to her room, wiping away the tears that threatened to fall. This was not the first time she had had to be painful to someone she cared about, but she knew it was for the best.

Most of her things were already packed, in the anticipation of leaving for the League the next day, and she rushed out of the Oak household, not wanting to face Professor Oak either. She knew Gary would explain the situation, or make up some lie to make it sound not as painful as it had really been.

She reached the Ketchum household within a minute and found Ash still in the front yard, sitting on a wooden bench with a blank expression on his face. What was going through his mind? Misty was unsure but she slowly approached him with a broad grin on her face.

"Ash, I'm back" she announced quietly. He looked up and almost fell over in shock at the packed shoulder bag she was carrying, the bag that had been out of his life for a year.

"W-what?" he stammered, standing up to face her. "For good?"

"For good" Misty replied. 

"So you're not just on the rebound then?" Ash asked cautiously.

"No" Misty shook her head. "I swear to you Ash, this is not me on the rebound. This is me in love with you and making it finally come to fruition." With that sentence, she dropped her bag and ran into his arms, holding him tight against her as he did the same to her. "I'll never leave you again. If you promise never to shut me out again."

"Oh Misty" Ash sighed. "I never meant to shut you out. I was shutting out my feelings for you. I was so worried about them, I had no idea what was going on, so I just absorbed myself in my training. I shouldn't have. It was the biggest mistake -"

"Shhh" Misty hushed him. "I don't wanna hear any more about regrets and mistakes and whatnot. I've heard and been through enough of them to last me a lifetime." No more words passed them as they shared their second kiss of the day, neither of them wanting to let go out of both fear and pleasure. Fear that it would be over, the feelings, the longings they had both dreamt about for a year. The kiss ended and Misty smiled into his eyes. "So let me guess. You're planning to leave tomorrow and you haven't started packing, let alone started thinking about what you're taking with you?" she asked teasingly.

"Well, you've got half of that right" Ash laughed. "I haven't started packing. But now I know a little of what I'm taking with me." He initiated another kiss, to which Misty easily and happily responded, melting in his arms, so much so that neither she nor he realised the front door had opened.

"Woah, sorry guys, didn't think you two were ones to rush into things" Brock commented. Misty quickly pulled away and grinned at her long time friend.

"This wasn't rushed. It was all part of the plan. Just took a while for it to come to light, I guess" she shrugged.

"And Gary...?" Brock asked.

"Gary will be at the League tomorrow, getting ready for his matches, some of which I will be attending" Misty announced. "And you are not to say a word about it" she said, turning back to Ash. "I find it hard for anything to relapse between us when he's on the battling field and I'm way up in the stands."

"Fair enough" Ash shrugged. 

"Well I just came out to tell Ash lunch was ready, but -"

"You'll be setting another place now, thankyou very much" Misty instructed him. The smile wouldn't leave her face as she thought back to times when all three of them would travel, laugh and be together most moments of the day. To have that all back was all she wanted, and to have Ash in her life the way she had dreamt about for so long. 

"I know the drill" Brock replied, feigning weariness, and he walked back inside. Ash grasped Misty's hand as she picked up her bag again. 

"C'mon, I'm starving" Ash announced, leading her towards the house.

"You haven't changed a bit" Misty sighed, that grin still not leaving her. "And I wouldn't want it any other way." With that the two of them walked in the house, closing the door behind them, almost symbolising that they were closing the door to Misty's life with Gary. For now they had a new door to step through. But it was one they both wanted to step through, and one that would hopefully never close.

A/N: Okay, I am so sorry that chapter is short, but I've had to retype and I hate doing that when I lose stuff. Anyways, also gotta point out (cos I haven't yet) that this fic is dedicated to Geodude/Graham, who is celebrating his birthday in, like, two and a half hours (ooh I'm cutting it fine, haha) so HAPPY BIRTHDAY ME AMIGO!! lol, hope you enjoyed and sorry about the wait! Reviews are always nice, AAML forever everyone! 


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